The Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, warned that the agency's collapse would deprive an entire generation of Palestinian children of education.

Lazzarini said in a press statement that there is a "real risk of the agency collapsing and exploding" if its severe financial distress continues.

He added that if UNRWA collapses, "we will certainly sacrifice a generation of children who will be deprived of a proper education."

Lazzarini described UNRWA as a "lifeline" for some six million Palestinian refugees spread across the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria.